Verkhovna Rada Committee on State Building, Regional Policy and Local Self-Government recommends Ukrainian Parliament adopt draft law "On amendments to some legislative acts of Ukraine" (as to voluntary unification of territorial communities) as a basis

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(&nbspInformation Department of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Secretariat&nbsp)

Deputy Chairman of the
Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, member of parliament, Viktor Vovk’s
formal pronouncement on his resignation as a co-chair of the Ukraine-Austria
inter-parliamentary cooperation group

In his official statement
addressed to the Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament A.Parubiy, Viktor Vovk wrote
as follows: “When three and a half years ago I assumed the position of the
co-chair of the Ukraine-Austria inter-parliamentary cooperation group (one of
the most numerous friendship groups in Ukrainian Parliament), I did this with
vigor and enthusiasm. I was confident that friendship between Ukraine and
Austria had a positive future that I could contribute to. I was also convinced
that, as a neutral European state, Austria had great potential to be Ukraine’s
true partner in the EU”.

“I continue to hold these beliefs,” he added.

“Unfortunately,
Austria’s good name in Ukraine was severely tarnished once the country’s
Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl decided to demonstratively invite to her wedding
Russian President Vladimir Putin (whom she barely knew!); and once the
disgraceful images of Minister Kneissl kneeling before Putin spread across the
globe,” pointed out the politician feeling indignant at her blameworthy misbehavior.

“It must have taken
great political vanity to invite - in the middle of two wars (in Ukraine and
Syria!) – someone who redrew European borders and is responsible for the loss
of tens of thousands of lives and turning millions of homes into rubble. A
number of those lives and homes were Ukrainian. It will take years for
Ukrainians to see Austria the way they did before the infamous “Styria
kneeling”. In particular, as many other Ukrainian MPs, I can no longer envision
Austria as an impartial international mediator in Ukraine,” runs then the
statement.

Particular stress
was laid in the document upon the following conclusion: “Unfortunately, the
issue is not limited to Minister Kneissl’s personal decisions, but rather is
evident in a pattern of disrespect for Ukraine shown over the past several
years by the Austrian Freedom Party (AFP), which Minister Kneissl represents in
Government. Virtually, the party sides with President Putin regardless of his
actions or decisions. This party even followed in the footsteps of the parties
of the Presidents’ of Turkmenistan and Tajikistan and signed a “cooperation
treaty” with Putin’s “United Russia” in 2016”.

As the
parliamentarian then stressed: “Oddly, it was an AFP representative who was
chosen to chair the friendship group with Ukraine in the previous convocation
of the Austrian Parliament (until the fall of 2017) - rendering cooperation
between our groups in effect paralyzed, despite extensive efforts of the
Ukrainian side. Even after you, as the Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament,
intervened by diplomatically and respectfully requesting the Second President
of the Austrian Parliament Karlheinz Kopf to correct this obvious political
misstep - a representative of the same party was assigned to chair the group in
the new convocation of the Austrian Parliament in 2018. This turned a political
misstep of the predecessors into an affront to common sense and effectiveness
of inter-parliamentary cooperation, let alone a disregard for Ukraine’s
struggles in repelling the Russian armed aggression”.

Finally, Viktor
Vovk announced his readiness to get the
sack: “Considering the circumstances as outlined above, I cannot continue
to discharge my duties as co-chair of the Ukraine-Austria friendship group at
the Ukrainian Parliament and declare my resignation from this position. I also
withdraw my membership in the group”.

“I am confident
that the spirit of friendship between the two nations will in due course repair
the damage done by irresponsible politicians and this crisis will be overcome;
however at this time I believe someone has to speak the truth and call things
by their name,” underscored Viktor Vovk, MP, Deputy Chairman of the
Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs.